Write Shorter Emails
Tired Of People Not Reading Things? Let's Get To The Point
Posted by Charlie Recksieck
on 2025-04-24
We've had mutltiple occasionas where we've been asked to address an issue for a client, we've provided a thoughtful response in an email and then after that it's just crickets. Or it becomes clear in a meeting that nobody bothered to read our attempt at a beautiful solution.
Why? The clients aren't dumb and they have a vested interest in making things at their workplace run smoothly.
So why don't they read the email?
Reasons For Not Reading A Long Work Email
Generally, people scan instead of reading. Maybe not in a letter from their loved ones or a message about how they've won a cash settlement. But at worst people are bombarded and they scan.
Most employees skim for the main point, action items and most importantly, deadlines that they have to meet. Basically, anything that affects them directly. If your key message is buried in paragraph 4, many people will miss it.
Postponing Opening/Reading - Long emails trigger the "I'll read this later" response. Some of us may even make sure to use the "mark as unread" option to preserve it for the intention to read it later.
Length - The longer the email, the more misinterpretations of it. When people skim they miss nuance and tone. Or really often they jump at the first mentioned issue and reply with incomplete info. Long messages increase confusion instead of solving it.
Managers Read Even Less - Studies consistently show that the higher someone's role, the more brutally they skim emails.
Trends In Email Reading
Employees now juggle a ton of communication channels: Slack / Teams, video calls, texts, project management tools, internal dashboards, notifications all on top of email. Email no longer feels like the "primary" channel, so attention drops.
People receive more email than ever, but they spend less time per email. Organizations are seeing: Lower open rates and lower read depth (people read the first 1-2 lines only). Many people treat email as a to-do list someone else controls, so they resist it.
Reading On Phone - Most employees now check email on their phone.
That means less patience for long paragraphs and an attitude of "I'll read this later" - they see it first on the phone with the intention to get to the long ones later (which often means never).
Cultural Shift - Younger employees (and increasingly everyone) prefer faster modes of communication like instant messaging, short videos, task comments and shared docs. Email is seen as formal, slow, and effortful.
Short-Attention Spans: True And False
So yes - people read work emails far less than they used to. Not because they're lazy, but because there's too much communication and workflows have changed
In a world of frequent interruptions, short attention bursts are natural - it doesn't necessarily mean our brains are "worse."
For tasks requiring concentration (long reading, writing, deep thinking), it’s still possible - but easier - to lose focus. That's not just structural (internet + phones) but also cultural (fast content, constant stimuli).
Blueprint For Your Work Email Getting Read Start To Finish
Let's not blame everything on the overwhelmed reader for not getting to the important info. The composition of your email can be an art to get your message across.
Instead of griping about short-attention spans, let's do better. Here's some suggestions. You'll notice that here at the end of a long article, I'm presenting these in bullet-point form.
* Start with a "one-sentence purpose" - People read emails when they instantly understand why they're reading.
Example Subject: "Quick approval needed by Wednesday".
Or the first line of a message: "I need your approval on the updated Q1 budget-should take 60 seconds to review."
Answer the reader's main questions: 1) What is this? 2) Is this urgent?
3) What do you need from me?
* Keep the entire email visually skimmable - Even if they end up reading the whole thing, they decide that based on a skim.
Use short paragraphs and bullet points.
Try bold text for key data.
Give them headers and white space.
Which means avoiding long paragraphs or dense blocks of text.
* Put the "ask" early - not at the end - Most people never reach the last paragraph of long emails.
Move your key action up.
Example:
Can you confirm the final file by 3pm today? Details below.
* Write like a human, not like corporate boilerplate - Clear conversational tone > formal corporate filler.
Avoid phrases like: "Per my previous email" or "At your earliest convenience"
* Use a "3-sentence rule" for context - If background is needed, limit it to three sentences max before the action.
That's enough for most people.
* Length Guidelines - According to a study, best-performing business emails across industries: 50-125 words for simple messages, up to 200-250 words for complex business decisions - and anything over 300 words statistically loses readers
* Direct and honest subject lines - Great subjects often contain the 'ask': "3 options for the Q2 campaign (short)" or "Schedule question-need 5 seconds".
A nightmare subject line is "Question" or "Update".
Equally bad is a subject line that's too long or has more than 1 idea in it.
Which brings us to the next recommendation ...
* Respect the reader's time (make your emails one-task emails) - If there are 2 ideas, make it 2 different emails.
Don't mix 5 different topics in one email.
If it really makes sense for multiple tasks, then make a short numbered list (1-3 max) early in the email.
* End with your single clear action - Avoid open-ended endings like "Let me know your thoughts."
Instead: Try things like
"Can we move forward? Yes/No." or
"Reply with a 15-minute time that works."
Narrow the cognitive load.
* Use a "preview panel test" - Put the most important 5-8 words in just in the subject and the first line.
That's what shows up in phone preview screens.
If those words don't sell the email's purpose, rewrite.
* Keep email short - Aim for 3-6 sentences max.
Put the main point in the first line.
* Use bullets - They're easier to scan and harder to ignore.
* If the topic is complex - Use a short email with a link to the long-detailed document.
If you need to include long data, attach or link it. Don't bury it in the email body.
The Takeaway
People don't read long work emails unless it's their job to. And sometimes not even then.
